New Bond Hearing For Darius Miles Set For February

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Following a judge denying immunity from prosecution to former Alabama basketball player and capital murder suspect Darius Miles last week, his defense attorneys will once again have the chance to make the case for bond to be granted to their client.

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As Patch previously reported, Miles and his childhood friend Michael Lynn Davis are accused of capital murder in the Jan. 15 shooting death of 23-year-old Birmingham native Jamea Harris on Grace Street near The Strip.

While the capital murder cases are being tried separately, Miles is accused of knowingly providing his legally owned handgun to Davis to be used in the commission of a violent crime.

Defense attorneys, however, for Miles have argued that he feared for his safety and acted in self-defense when he provided Davis with the gun in the moment prior to the Jan. 15 shooting.

Indeed, it remains unclear who fired first in the shooting and Davis was shot twice during the incident by Cedric Johnson — Harris's boyfriend who was driving her Jeep the morning of the shooting, with Harris in the passenger seat.

Circuit Court Judge Daniel Pruet ruled against the motion for dismissal last week, saying that the defense failed to provide sufficient evidence or testimony to support its claims of self-defense ahead of a jury trial.

In response, the Turner Law Group filed last week for a new bond hearing for Miles, along with setting a hearing date for the defense's motion to suppress statements Miles gave investigators before being read his Miranda rights on the morning of Jan. 15. This comes after the state said it would not seek the death penalty in the case.

Both hearings will now be held on Feb. 22, 2024.

“We are seeking a bond again because, as the evidence has made clear, Darius Miles deserves a chance to make a bond and return to his family while he awaits his day in court," defense attorney Mary Turner told Patch. "These are obviously tragic circumstances for all involved, but a bond is not an unreasonable request in a case with facts such as these.”

As Patch previously reported, the pre-trial immunity hearing for Davis is set for December.

As was the case when defense attorneys sought bond for Miles in May, the Turner Law Group also said Miles is not a flight risk and his family will pay for an ankle monitor.

Miles has also said he would agree to be monitored by Tuscaloosa Community Corrections if granted bond.

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